black magic woman ; ikaris

𝙨𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙣

"Are you sure you're still up to going? Yesterday was pretty taxing for you."

Ikaris was watching as River went through her closet, pulling out a red dress as well as a green dress. She hung them up on the closet door with a sigh, then turned to face him.

"I look forward to very few things during the year. One of them is Christmas. And I'm not letting Dane ruin this for me. Now, red or green?"

He got up from her bed and walked over, wrapping his arms around her waist from behind and letting his chin rest on her shoulder. He moved one hand to run his fingers over the dresses, gently rubbing the fabric of each one between his thumb and index finger.

"Red, I like the way it feels. Plus I think you'll be warmer, it's got the longer sleeves," he said, tilting his head to press a kiss to the side of her neck.

"It is a pretty one. All right, red it is," she said, leaning against him. He wrapped his other arm back around her and held her close, feeling her shoulders rise and fall against his chest.

"I'm sorry, River. If there's anything I can do to make it up to you, just let me know," he said softly.

"Thank you. You should let me get changed now. I'll only be a minute," she whispered, and he nodded. Pressing another kiss to her skin, he let go of her, his fingers trailing over her skin before she was free from his grasp.

"I'll go make sure Monet's got dinner and enough water until we get back," he said, and she smiled faintly.

"Sounds good. I'll meet you downstairs as soon as I'm ready."

"Got it. Take your time, even though you always look amazing," he said, and she laughed, giving him a push to get him out the door. He chuckled and winked just before she could close the door, so she blew him a kiss in return. Once the door was shut, River leaned against it for a moment, rubbing her face with both hands. She looked over at the dress, pushed herself up from the door, and nodded once.

Downstairs, Ikaris had Monet in one arm and his food dish in another. The cat was purring his heart out and rubbing against him, trying to reach the empty dish.

"Relax, relax, there's nothing in here yet," he said, laughing a bit. Monet continued to purr, hopping from his arm to the kitchen counter so he could rub his head against his back. With a smile, Ikaris turned to rub his head, then went to go fill the food dish. Once it was full, he set the dish on the counter and laughed again as Monet ran over and began to eat. As the cat was distracted, Ikaris went to fill up the water bowl next, humming to himself as he did so. Despite the excitement of the previous day, he was surprisingly in a good mood. And strangely enough, he was excited about the party. A chance to make a good impression on River's friends, a chance to make her happy and make her holiday a little brighter. Maybe he'd ask one of her friends for ideas, as last minute as it was. All he had to do was explain the situation, that the original plan fell through, and he wanted her Christmas to at least have a small bright spot.

"What do you think, pal?" he asked as he set the now full water dish down. He watched as Monet continued to scarf down his food, and he smiled again. When he heard footsteps coming down the stairs, he turned to look, and his eyes went wide. The dress looked even better on her, and watching her walk towards him was like a dream.

"Oh, you look heavenly," he said, walking over and meeting her halfway. He set his hands on her waist and pulled her close, smiling as she reached to cup his face.

"Thank you, that's really sweet of you," she said, brushing her thumb over his cheek. She smiled as he leaned into her touch, and he tilted his head to press a kiss to her palm.